The Editor, Sir:

'Rather dismal' is the only thought which came to mind upon reading Rev. Devon Dick's take on the so-called 'bling incident'. I am not over the hill just yet, as a matter of fact I am quite young. However, it seems eons ago that discipline was the order of the day in schools.

I vividly remember the days gone by that the sixth formers were the first tier of discipline in schools. They were respected, and were all seen as leaders that we felt motivated to emulate. Rev. Dick, in my days gone by, the school stipulated the thickness of appropriate shoes. The colours were solid, so much so that even the tan rubber heels would have to be so coloured to ensure UNIFORMITY. Yes, Rev Dick, uniformity ... this is but one of the functions of the school uniform.

These students are aware of the school rules well in advance of the one term of conformity given to adhere to the already known rule. These students knew of the deadline, and were not bothered to even turn up with a letter from their guardian requesting more time to conform, which at the very least would have been the decent thing to do.

Good suffering for the bad

Locking them out of school may have been a bit drastic, but have you noted the behaviour of present-day young adults? They lack discipline, courtesy, decency, and the list goes on. While it is in poor taste to stereotype an entire sector of society, i.e. school children, it is best they understand from now that the good must suffer for the bad. It is only then that the voices of the predominantly good will be heard, because they will start speaking up.

In my days at school, an entire class would be punished for the action of the few bad apples, and in even this there was a lesson, a lesson which goes unheeded in our society at present. By and large the population is predominantly good; however, the good refuse to speak up and be heard ... and Sodom and Gomorrah came to pass, wherein an entire community was punished, (I am not biblical, so I stand to be corrected here).

What kind of message are you, a leader in the church community, sending? Do you not hear the pleas of your congregation for a better Jamaica? It is obvious that the bling shoe is not the ultimate issue, but moreso the inability of these young adults to conform to rules. And Rev. Dick, this is the reason that our society is in the dilemma which we now must face, as not so long ago, many of the predominantly good in society started making excuses for the ills in our immediate environs. It had to start somewhere, and it was the 'little things' which we allowed to slip through that now form the basis for the bigger things we are now facing.

I am, etc.,

NICHOLA

nicholawong@yahoo.com

Kingston 10

Via Go-Jamaica